


Calculated Risk

by Ruler_of_Nope_Island



Category: The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Awkward Flirting, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-20
Updated: 2018-02-20
Packaged: 2019-03-21 15:59:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13744371
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ruler_of_Nope_Island/pseuds/Ruler_of_Nope_Island
Summary: Basira and Melanie are actually as awkward as any of the guys, when it comes down to it.





	Calculated Risk

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote something that wasn't porn!

The bus isn’t coming. Rain pours down the glass sides of the bus shelter and forms a lake that threatens Melanie’s shoes. She still watches her phone though, switches back and forth between Facebook and her email, and the minutes tick slowly by. The triumph of hope over experience. At this rate she’s going to miss her train. The Magnus Institute may offer security, regular pay, and interesting work but the commute is hell. Things have gotten especially interesting over the past week but honestly after being stabbed by a ghost nothing really phases her anymore. The boys - because they are boys, they act like boys - react to everything with a kind of aggressive hysteria that really grates on her nerves. Coworkers are the downside to an office job.

The noise of a car window being rolled down startles her and she takes an instinctive step back. But the voice that calls out is familiar.  
“Fancy a lift?”  
It’s Basira, strongest contender for the most sane person working in the archives. She used to work for some secret division of the police, apparently, but Melanie’s joke about the X-Files hadn’t gone over very well.   
That being said, Basira had spent the last week not looking at her, in a way that suggested that she wanted to look but wouldn’t because...well. Melanie could only hope and speculate. Basira was really, really hot. And her relationship with Daisy Tonner left Melanie speculating.   
“Yeah. That’d be great. Thanks.”  
A pause.  
“How about getting in?”  
“Ahahaha. Yeah.”

She gets in.   
“Mind the rubbish,” Basira says. “Haven’t had the chance to clear it out. Used to belong to my brother, but I got it cheap.”  
“That’s good.”  
Smooth, Melanie.   
“So where do you live, anyway?”   
Melanie tells her and Basira’s face falls.   
“It’s ok, if you can just take me to the station, I can-”  
“How about you stay - well. You could stay at mine, if you wanted. I mean, it’s raining pretty hard. And my flatmate’s just moved out, and we’re about the same size, so you could borrow some of my clothes -”  
Behind them, the bus sounds its horn.  
“What do you know?” Melanie says. “It came after all. But the offer sounds nice. Thanks.”  
“Sure.”

Basira starts the car and they spend the rest of the drive not looking at each other. 

The flat is nice, if a little shabby.  
“I’ve had a bit more time to tidy since I left the force,” Basira says. “I’ve been doing that Marie Kondo thing, but I’m not sure my life’s been changed by tidying.”  
“Spark joy sounds like a gay porn star.”  
It doesn’t, really, but Basira laughs. They are still very carefully not looking at each other.   
“Do you want a drink? I’m thinking of quitting so I’ve got some nice whiskey it’d be a shame to waste.”  
“Joining the Magnus Institute seems like a good reason to keep drinking.”  
“I’d rather not. Section 31 dropouts tend to have a high rate of alcoholism. ”  
“Fair enough. Did you see the state of Tim on Thursday?”  
Basira winces.  
“Yeah. Ouch. I feel a bit sorry for him. I heard the Prentiss stuff was pretty nasty.”  
“Prentiss stuff?” Melanie puts her bag on the floor and sits down on the couch.   
“I can’t believe they haven’t told you about the Prentiss stuff yet.”  
“I can. There’s a lot we don’t get told.”  
“Mostly by Jon. I feel that entire situation in Elias’s office could have been avoided if -”  
Melanie suddenly remembers what went down - what went wrong- in Elias’s office and freezes. Let’s just bring up the time that your partner or possible girlfriend threatened to murder our current boss. That’s a great topic for discussion.  
“Would you like a cup of tea?” Basira looks as awkward as she feels.   
“Love one.”  
It’s almost a relief when Basira vanishes into the kitchen. Melanie doesn’t usually have tea this late. She’ll find it hard to sleep tonight anyway. All that weird tension. Maybe she should just waltz into Basira’s bedroom and...do what? Murderous ghosts are so much easier. They don’t have to deal with ambiguity. Either the ghost stabs you and you escape, the ghost stabs you and you die, or the ghost doesn’t stab you at all.   
“I’ve only got earl grey,” Basira pokes her head back through the door.   
“That’s fine.”  
Melanie hates earl grey.  
“Milk?”  
“Yeah. No sugar, please.”  
Basira brings in the tea. She laughs quietly and Melanie looks up. Their eyes meet and then Basira flicks her eyes away.  
“Just remembering a conversation I had with Daisy once. I asked her why she was single and she said she didn’t like anyone who had more than two types of tea in their house, and that was all the women she kept meeting.”  
Melanie thinks that perhaps Daisy’s singlehood had more to do with her being a crazed murderer but that’s a thought she tries to keep to herself. It doesn’t work, as Basira sits down next to her - maybe a bit too close to be casual - she makes a face.  
“I know you didn’t get the best impression of Daisy but she’s not always like that. She’s just seen some pretty messed up stuff and it’s...she sees things in black and white. Anything she thinks is dangerous she’ll take out without much thought. It’s not her best quality.”  
Melanie takes a sip of her scalding tea, trying to think of something to say that isn’t something along the lines of “oh, so you’re not together?”  
“Rosie asked me what my birthday was,” Basira asks, suddenly. “Why?”  
“Oh, apparently she makes everyone a cake on their birthday.”  
“That’s sweet of her,” Basira takes a sip of her own tea and winces. “But the Institute isn’t - well, it’s not big but it isn’t small, either. She must bake, like, a cake a week.”  
“June’s apparently super busy for her.”  
“Wow. So do we think this is a genuine thing or something she feels like she has to do because she’s the receptionist?”   
“I don’t know. Wouldn’t surprise me though, if it was the second thing. I mean, how many women are there in admin positions versus how many men are there in management?”  
Basira gives her a bit of a look. It’s only the second time they’ve made eye contact in the entire evening. Melanie feels her stomach lurch a little.  
“Have you seen how everyone’s super white?”  
“Yeah. Male, pale, and stale.”  
“That should be the new motto.”  
They both laugh. Melanie edges a bit closer.  
Georgie says that Jon doesn’t even have any archival qualifications.”  
“Wow. And the archives are a complete mess. Makes me feel better that the most admin I do is filling out Section 31 forms pretty much continually.”  
“I suppose the risk of murder is a bit of a deterrent.”   
Another twist, deep inside her. She might have had a thing for a Sasha James, once, but not the Sasha James that everyone remembers. Or doesn’t. She might be the only person who thought about her as she really was, laughing and joking, with no time for a relationship, not right now, but maybe once they had the archives sorted out.   
“Hey. Hey. Are you ok?”  
Melanie finds herself tearing up and hates herself for it. She promised herself she wouldn’t, not ever, because she didn’t know Sasha that well and terrible things happen all the time, especially to people in their line of work.   
Basira takes her hand.  
“It’s totally ok if you’re not. Because it’s not like any of us are, not really.”  
Another gulp of tea and she’s got herself back under control. Mostly.   
“We’re not as bad as the others, though.”  
“Yet,” Basira says. She lets go of Melanie’s hand, and Melanie curses herself. Way to lighten the mood. “I keep thinking that maybe if I’d stuck it out as long as Daisy had then I’d be like her. Maybe it’s a relief, coming here. Daisy’s my friend. But I don’t want to be like her. Sorry.”  
Melanie puts her mug down.  
“Why?”  
“I didn’t mean to just feelings vomit all over you.”  
“I’m glad someone else reads Captain Awkward. I feel like I could use some of the scripts-”   
Basira stands up.   
“You know what? We should go to bed. Early morning tomorrow.”  
“It’s eight thirty on a Friday. Were you planning to go in for the weekend?”  
“Oh god,” Basira looks embarrassed. “God no. I’d be alone. With Jon.”  
“Tim told me you and Jon had a Thing.”   
Tim was probably completely unreliable on this subject but Melanie’s other alternative was taking Basira by the shoulders, looking her in the eyes and flat out asking her if she liked girls.  
“Ugh. Absolutely not.”   
Although not wanting to date Jon was an entirely reasonable response and not necessarily a sign either way.   
Basira takes a breath.  
“Would you like to go to bed? With me, I mean.”  
That’s a definite sign pointing a very particular way. 

They go into Basira’s room.   
“I hope you don’t mind,” Basira says, “But I sleep with the lights on.”  
“Are we actually sleeping?” Melanie’s traitor brain curses. It’s fine that Basira just wants to sleep. But maybe if they’re not going to, well, maybe she should sleep on the couch and not lay next to Basira boiling in sexual frustration.   
“Not for a while, I hope.”  
Melanie looks up and Basira is staring at her, eyes dark and smiling softly. They hold their gaze; move closer to each other.   
“Yeah,” Melanie says. “Not for a while, I think.”


End file.
